For the Good of the Game
by LilahMorgann
Summary: Just a little mystery I've had in my brain for a while. Lilly and the rest of the team enter the world of basketball as they try to solve the murder of a young mother, Matilda Moreno. The woman seemed to have no enemies, but as always, nothing is as it seems. Plus, a Scotty/Lilly relationship story line.
1. Chapter 1

**I originally started a story slightly similar to this for another show, but I didn't like where it was heading. There are going to be some NBA teams mentioned, but they are completely fake and none of the players in the story are supposed to represent any actual players. I'm placing this after the season finale, so I'm going to try to add in some of what I had hoped would happen with Scotty and Lilly's relationship.**

Lilly was busy working at her desk when she heard Scotty's voice speak up behind her.

"Lil, we've got a visitor." Scotty told her. Lilly looked up to see an elderly priest nervously looking around the station room. Oh boy, she thought to herself, this should be good.

"Is there anything I can help you with sir?" Scotty asked as he approached the man to shake his hand. "I'm Detective Valens and this is my partner, Detective Rush."

"Father Samuel Myer, but please just call me Samuel," He replied. "I'm sorry if I appear nervous. I always hoped I would never have to deal with the police while I was a serving my congregation."

"Please sit Samuel." Scotty told him as he pulled a chair over so Samuel would be able to sit next to Lilly. Scotty leaned against Lilly's desk as they waited for Samuel to start his story.

"I'm not really sure how to begin. What I say may not even be able to be used in court," He sighed. "But maybe you can use what I can tell you to find more information."

"More information?" Lilly asked. "Maybe you should just tell us what you know and we can go from there."

"I recorded him giving me permission to come to the police," He quickly told them. "I'm not doing anything wrong."

"Of course not Father." Scotty reassured him. "Just tell us what you know."

_He made his way quietly into the hospital room as he carefully balanced his bible and oils in his arms. He approached the bed in the center of the room and gently took the hand of the man lying in the bed as he took a seat next to him. He thought to himself how the man looked younger than he did, and he wondered what was taking him from the world so soon. However, that wasn't his business. He was simply there to give this man last rites and let him go to heaven in peace._

"_Father?" The man strained to say from his bed. His breath was ragged as he struggled to breathe._

"_Yes Patrick, I've come," Samuel said gently. "My name is Samuel. Would you like me to begin now?"_

"_Do you… have a phone… with you Father?" Patrick asked simply._

"_Yes, why?" Samuel asked, confused where this was leading._

"_Does… it have a video… recorder on it?" He asked._

"_Patrick, save your strength." Samuel told him. "Let me help you get comfortable."_

"_Please Father,... please record what I'm… about to say." Patrick grabbed Samuel's hand and looked him straight in the eye. Samuel was unsure of what to do, but this man had asked for him to be with him. Patrick seemed tired and weak, but it was clear his mind was still there. If this is what he wanted it was Samuel's duty to do it. He reached into his coat pocket and got out the phone his niece had gotten him for his birthday. The gift had even come with an afternoon with her to teach him how to use the new gadget. He found the video camera setting and held the phone up so it was recording Patrick's face._

"_My name is… Patrick Hughes," Patrick began, "I am fifty five years old, and I am giving… full permission for Father Samuel… to go to the police with this recording. I should have said what I knew… so many years ago. Please… tell her family I am so… sorry."_

_Patrick's voice cut off as he began to cry, but Samuel knew it was important to have him finish._

"_Sorry for what Patrick?" He asked, although he feared what may come next._

"_I am so… sorry," Patrick repeated, his voice getting more strained as he fought for every breath. "Mat… trusted me. She trusted… all of us."_

_Samuel couldn't take it anymore. He turned off the camera and grabbed his oils off of the table he had set them down on. Patrick didn't have much time left and this needed to be done._

"_It's alright Patrick," Samuel told him as he began the ritual, "It is all going to be alright."_

Samuel turned off the recording and silently looked up to see what the reaction was on both detectives' faces.

"I was told this unit investigates cases that have never been solved." Samuel told them.

Detective Valens still had a stunned look on his face, but Detective Rush had an almost sympathetic look on her face.

"That's right Father, but I'm afraid that video isn't much to go on." She told him. "We don't even know who this Mat is and even-"

"Matilda Moreno." Scotty cut her off, a look of bewilderment in his eyes. "He was talking about Matilda Moreno."

"That's what I feared," Samuel nodded. "After Mr. Hughes passed I looked up his name to see if I could find any clues. I searched his name along with the name Mat, and came across articles about her."

"I'm missing something, aren't I Valens?" Lilly asked.

"That man was the Vice President of NBA Referee Operations department." Scotty told her.

"And Matilda Moreno?" She asked.

"The name Henry Waters sound familiar to you?" Scotty asked. Lilly thought the name over that sounded vaguely familiar.

"Something to do with sports, right?" She guessed. "Basketball?"

"He's the coach of the Philadelphia Phoenixes," He told her. "And Matilda Moreno was his granddaughter. She was founded dead in a field about five years ago. She had just turned twenty four, she was just a kid."

"Isn't it kind of stretch to say Patrick was talking about Matilda?" She asked. "Did the two know each other well?"

"I would say so since she was his intern," Scotty replied. "Plus the fact he was the last person to see her alive."

"Now that definitely changes things," She replied. "Thank you very much for coming forward Father Samuel. Would it be possible for you to leave your phone with us as evidence?"

"Yes, yes of course," He nodded. "I'll ask my niece to help me get a temporary one."

"Let me walk you out Sir." Scotty helped Samuel up from his chair and Lilly watched as the two walked out to the hallway. She had the same feeling she wasn't going to be getting much rest in the next couple of weeks she always got when she and Scotty broke open a new case. Turning back to her computer she Googled the name Matilda Moreno. Immediately pictures came up of a raven haired beauty with dark jade eyes. She selected the option images and was faced with hundreds of pictures of Matilda with basketball players and an older man Lilly recognized as Henry Waters.

"I hope we can get you justice Matilda," Lilly whispered. "I really hope we can."


	2. Chapter 2

**Read and review please!**

Lilly was looking up information about Matilda when Scotty came back into the station room. Lilly couldn't help but smile when she saw him, but she quickly gained her composure. She knew she and Scotty had to keep their relationship a secret, but Lilly wondered how long they could keep the charade up; especially with such nosey coworkers.

"What did the priest want Lilly?" Stillman pulled Lilly out of her own thoughts as he came out of his office to ask about what he had just seen. He had seen the conversation from his office but he hadn't wanted to interrupt.

"This is going to be messy one," Lilly told him, shaking her head. "I can feel it."

"He had information about Matilda Moreno's murder Boss," Scotty replied as he sat down at his desk. "Patrick Hughes confessed on his death bed that he helped cover it up."

"Did I hear something about the Moreno murder?" Nick asked with Will trailing behind him. The two had just returned from testifying at court at heated trial and, although both were exhausted from the ordeal, the name they had just heard had peaked their interest.

"Looks like it's been opened again," Stillman replied. "Will, Nick, Scotty, you come with me to get the files from the evidence room."

"No problem Boss," Scotty replied and left with the other men, but not before giving Lilly another smile. Lilly had the urge to punch the man. It was as if he was trying to have someone catch them.

"Everything going okay Lil?" Kat asked her from own desk. "You look a little flushed."

"Yeah, I'm fine," She assured Kat. "I just think this case is already getting to me. Matilda had a kid, a one year old named Catalina."

"That's too bad," Kat shook her head. "She won't even remember her."

"Do you worry about Veronica?" Lilly asked, unable to look Kat in her eyes. "About what would happen if you got hurt on the job, I mean."

"Sometimes," Kat sighed. "Why? Are you thinking about having kids?"

"No!" Lilly quickly responded. "I was just wondering, okay?"

"I was just kidding Lilly," Kat laughed. "You really are stressed."

Lilly and Kat remained focused on their own work until the men came back with five boxes filled with evidence from Matilda Moreno's murder. That was the thing Lilly really hated about being a cop. She hated that people's lives were reduced to just boxes.

"So, where do we start?" Scotty asked as everyone began to open and look through the boxes. "We're looking for multiple suspects here since Patrick said Matilda trusted them, as in plural."

"Maybe it was some of the Phoenix players?" Lilly suggested. "Matilda was working for the people who train referees and regulate how they work, so maybe she found out some of the players were bribing referees."

"Could be a possibility," Will agreed, "But my bet would be placed on one of the newer players. Matilda was five years old when her grandfather became the coach. A handful of those players had known her since she was just a baby."

"I'm assuming the husband was already looked into," Kat said as she leafed through a file. "Anyone remember if he was a suspect?"

"Says here Matthew Jefferson was at a late practice with half of the Phenoxies," Will told her. "This statement from her grandfather says that the team had lost a game that should have been an easy win, so they were working late to make up for it."

"That sounds like Henry Waters," Stillman laughed. "He demands nothing but the best."

"Did that kind of pressure apply to Matilda too?" Lilly asked. "Maybe the stress of being his granddaughter was getting to her and she got herself into some sort of trouble trying to get away from it."

"Not a chance Lil. That girl was born to be in the world of basketball," Nick told her. "She was his protégée since she was born."

"He's right," Scotty agreed. "Matilda grew up on that court; right next to her grandfather. She had a special seat just a few seats down from his seat and she would be taking notes the entire game. I watched her grow up on TV with the rest of America."

"The flowers, those are for her aren't they?" Lilly asked, suddenly remembering what she had seen at a Phoenix game with an old boyfriend once. "They put flowers on where she should have been sitting on the Phoenixes first home game, right?"

"Every tip off game for the Phoenixes for the last six year," Will sighed. "I don't think that team is quite ready to move on yet, but hopefully giving them closer will help."

"How are we going to handle interviewing everyone boss?" Scotty asked. "Who should we start with?"

"Matilda's parents live with her husband now, so you and Lil can go and interview all three of them," Stillman replied, recalling an interview he had seen of Jackson recently talking about his mother and father in laws support. "Kat and Will go see if Henry Water's is open to talking. Once you talk to him see if he'll get you permission to talk to the rest of the team."

"What about Matilda's boss, Steven Squire?" Nick asked. "You want me to go interview him?"

"Not on your own Nick," Stillman shook his head. "You and Will can interview him tomorrow. Until then you and I can look through this mountain of evidence and see what we can find."

"Sounds good to me Boss," Lilly said as she put on her coat and the others gathered what they would need to interview Matilda's family.

"Tread lightly," Stillman told the four as they left, who all replied with smirks.

"We always do Boss," Scotty laughed, "We always do."


	3. Chapter 3

**It's a long chapter for you because I'm stuck on the really long flight. Read and review please.**

Before they had left, Stillman had called Matilda's home to verify her parents and husband would be available to talk to the two detectives. He had called Scotty to let him know that he had learned that Matilda's mother, Eva, was at the home along with Matthew, who had just returned home the previous night from a game in Los Angeles. Her father, however, was deployed in Kandahar, but Scotty was planning to ask for his email address in order to ask him any questions he and Lilly may have had after they had interviewed Eva and Matthew. Lilly was driving them to the house now, and Scotty was taking advantage of their time alone.

"Scotty, I'm trying to drive." Lilly glared at him as he ran his hand down her thigh, but there wasn't much heat to her words.

"Come on Lil, let me have a little fun while we can," Scotty laughed. The two very rarely had time alone together. They were almost always working cases at the department, where they certainly couldn't show any signs of affection, and when they weren't working they were too exhausted to do much else but sleep. Both detectives were beginning to understand why most people in law enforcement were divorced or single, but at least they had the advantage of getting to see each other daily at work.

"Really Scotty, we need to focus," Lilly laughed. "Come on; before we get to the house tell me more about what you know about Matilda."

"Okay, Lil, okay," Scotty smiled. "Let's see. She was beautiful, but you saw that from her photos. She came from a normal middle class family. Her grandfather was in the Air Force before he started coaching, so she really didn't grow up rich and fancy. Her mom is a writer and dads in the military. She has a older brother, Eli, but he lives in Chicago and plays for the Gladiators. What else do you want to know?"

"It sounds like she was really close to Henry and the team," Lilly replied as she thought about all the possible places that could lead the case. "Any possibility he was involved, maybe she found out something she wasn't supposed to know?"

"I wish I could say it wasn't a possibility," Scotty sighed, "but I've seen things that have really surprised me these last few years. But Lilly, I really doubt it. That girl was Henry's world. He pushed her just like he pushed his players."

"How did Henry like his little girl shacking up with one of his rising stars?" Lilly asked.

"Not sure," Scotty shrugged his shoulders. "He's a hard man for those sports commentators to interview, but I think if she was happy he was happy. He always wanted the best for her. She had been the team's intern since she was in grade school, and she had just gotten the job with the referee committee before she died. She was going to be one heck of a coach."

"Maybe someone didn't like that," Lilly guessed. "Maybe some sexist jerk didn't like that a female was about to come in and be a head coach."

"Wouldn't surprise me Lil, wouldn't surprise me," Scotty told her as the pulled up the gated community where Matilda had once lived. After showing the guard their badges, they were given brief instructions to find the home. It wasn't hard and pretty soon the two were standing on the doorstep of 1515 Miranda Lane. Lilly went to ring the doorbell, but before she could the door was swung open. Standing in front of them was a middle aged woman with auburn hair, with an expression Lilly couldn't quite place. Anxiety? Anticipation? Hope?

"You two must be Detectives Rush and Valens, please come in," Eva ushered in the two to a small living room just off the foyer. It was a rather modest home for a basketball player making thirty million dollars a year but it was warm and inviting.

"You have a lovely home," Scotty told Eva, who gave him a warm smile back.

"Matilda and I didn't want Catalina to be one of those spoiled rich kids." A voice said behind the two detectives, who turned around to see the six feet tall basketball player walking down the stairs. "No one needs one of those giant mansions."

"Mr. Jefferson, it's nice to meet you," Lilly told him as she stuck her hand out to shake his. Matthew smiled back and shook both detectives' hands.

"Please, just Matt. Do either of you want something to drink?" Matthew asked, but both detectives shook their heads. Matthew directed them to sit on the coach, as he and Eva sat across from the,.

"If it would be okay with you and Eva, we would like to ask you some questions about Matilda," Lilly told them. "We know you were interviewed before but there is new evidence in her case."

"Patrick Hughes you mean," Eva replied and Lilly nodded. Stillman had called both Henry and Matilda's mother about the new evidence.

"Patrick couldn't have done it," Matthew said with conviction. "Matilda was his friend. She never said they had any problems."

"Well, is there anyone Matilda did have problems with?" Scotty asked. "The initial report didn't mention anything."

"No, no one." Matthew replied, but Lilly could tell by Eva's soured expression she disagreed.

"Eva, was there someone who wanted to hurt Matilda?" She asked.

"Not hurt just… she was upset with Luther, that's all," Eva sighed. "He broke her trust."

"Eva, it wasn't a problem," Matthew interjected. "They had patched things up months before she died."

"You're talking about Luther Yale, right?" Scotty guessed. "She must have been mad when he talked about her on national television."

"Luther Yale is a former Blazer player and one of the main basketball commentators on ESPN, "Eva explained to an obviously lost Lilly. "About two months before she died they had a blow out fight here."

"About?" Lilly asked. Eva nodded to her son in law to explain what had happened.

"Luther was like one of Matilda's uncles. They met up about once a month at Matilda's favorite Italian place when Luther would fly in from LA and just talked basketball, but it was always supposed to be off the record. As much as Matilda was part of the team, she wasn't. She didn't have the authority to speak on their behalf, you know what I mean?" Matthew asked and both detectives nodded.

"So she would give him opinions about the NBA but he was never supposed to talk about it on television," Scotty replied.

"Exactly, except one time he didn't do that," Matthew sighed. "Henry makes sure the Phoenixes have strong character and that we represent Philly like we should, but sometimes guys make mistakes. There was this picture floating around, one from Halloween, of Jake Iverson and Phillip Stein. They had both dressed up like mobsters and some guy at the party was dressed up like this referee, Glenn Rodgers."

"I'm guessing by the look on your face you aren't a big fan of Rodgers," Lilly observed and Matthew couldn't help but let out a small laugh.

"No one is Detective. It's pretty safe to say he was one of the most hated refs in the NBA, and not just by the Phoenixes. He was one of those tools who just wanted to show everyone he had power. He's a bully," Matthew explained.

"So this picture wasn't too flattering to him," Scotty asked, trying to bring the converstation back into focus.

"Yeah, the picture. Iverson and Stein thought it would be funny to pose with the guy dressed up like Rodgers with their fake guns to his head," Matthew told them. "It wasn't their best move, I'll admit it, but it was a party. They were just letting off steam and didn't think someone was going to put it on the internet."

"So Matilda and Yale talked about this picture at dinner?" Lilly asked slightly confused where this was going, but Scotty was beginning to remember that day on Sports Center.

"Yale, he sort of quoted her about some of the flake the team was getting, right?" Scotty asked Matthew and Matilda.

"He wasn't supposed to repeat it," Eva replied exasperated. "He knew what she was saying was meant for his ears only."

"What did she say?" Lilly asked.

"When Yale asked her what she thought about the picture she told him 'he's shit on our team for long enough. It's about time someone shit on him.'" Matthew replied. "It's not like she didn't mean it, that's not what she was angry about, but she knew it wasn't professional. She knew it wasn't something she was supposed to say about a referee, but had a few drinks that night, and Matilda never drank."

"So she and Yale fought over this?" Scotty asked and both Matthew and Eva nodded "How bad was the fight?"

"I just caught the end of it," Matthew explained. "I had gotten home from a game that day and was sleeping upstairs. Next thing you know I hear Matilda screaming her head off."

"_You didn't think it would be that big of a deal? That's your excuse for repeating some drunken anger I told you? Are you kidding me?" Matthew had heard mumbled commotion coming from downstairs when he awoke in his room, but he couldn't quite make out the voice his wife was arguing with. As he opened the bedroom door and began to quietly walk downstairs he could hear the conversation more clearly, and he was quickly able to guess who it was._

"_He you said it Matilda, not me," Matthew heard Luther say. "You meant it didn't you?"_

"_You know I meant it," he heard his wife say, "but you knew I didn't want you to repeat it to the world. When have you ever done that before?"_

_As he walked down the stairs Matthew could tell that his wife and Luther were somewhere near the kitchen. Unsure of what to do he decided to stand by the wall and tried to decide if he should intervene._

"_Hey, it's not like anyone's disagreeing with you," Luther replied calmly. "Most people would love to insult that man right to his face."_

"_That's not the point Luther, and you know it," Matilda replied with an exasperated sigh. "It wasn't professional. You know people are going to use this against me when I try to get an assistant coaching job. You know it."_

"_That's going to be in a long, long time Matilda," Luther told her. "No one will even remember this."_

"_Get the hell out of my house Luther, just get the hell out." Matilda said dryly as a silence passed through the room. "Leave and never come back."_

"_You need me," Luther replied curtly. "Who else is going to get your name out there?"_

"_I'm going to get it out there all by myself," Matilda yelled. "I don't need some traitor thinking I need him."_

_It was then Matthew heard their daughter began to wail from upstairs. He walked into the kitchen to see his wife with a red face and clenched fist, and standing across from her was the six foot basketball player that had once been one of her most trusted friends. Matthew felt like he could safely assume that friendship was over now._

"_Hey Matilda, I think the baby needs you," He gently told her, unsure of how to handle the situation. She nodded and walked away to go upstairs, but not before glaring at her once good friend. Once she had left the room Luther grabbed his keys from the counter and stuck out his hand for Matthew to shake._

"_It's good to see you man. Keep playing the way you've been playing and you'll make MVP," he smiled, but Matthew stepped back and ignored Luther's extended hand._

"_You heard my wife Luther," he told him. "Get out."_

"_Whatever man," Luther shrugged his shoulders as he began to walk out. "You kids just don't get basketball."_

"She was beyond angry at him," Eva told them, "but she knew she had to let it go. He was her family and she knew he hadn't meant to hurt her."

"Still, I think one of our detectives is going to interview Mr. Yale," Scotty told them. "Even if it's just over the phone he may be able to tell use something we could use."

"Of course Detective. I'll have someone send you the number of his private cell so you'll have an easy time getting to him." Eva told them, but her attention was diverted when heard the creaking of the stair steps behind her. Standing sleepy-eyed on them was a gorgeous little girl; the spitting image of her mother.

"Grandma, who are those people?" The little girl asked as she pressed her face against the banister.

"I'll explain to you later," Eva replied sweetly as she got up from her seat. "Come on Kitty Cat, let's put you back in that bed so you can finish your nap."

The detectives watched with Matthew as the pair walked upstairs out of sight. Confident the little girl was out of ear range, they continued their last few questions.

"Now, before we leave, is there anyone else you can think that wanted to hurt your wife?" Lilly asked. "Maybe an angry fan had threatened one of you?"

"Actually, when I think about it, there was this one letter I got after she died," Matthew replied. "We got hate mail a lot, from people who didn't like I was black, she was white and were married. Nothing that bad that we thought we were in danger or something. But there was this one letter that stood out. I only got it a year ago actually and when I read it I was so pissed I threw it in the garbage, but I kept the envelope it came in."

"That might really help us Matthew," Lilly told him and Matthew got up to retrieve the letter. Minutes later he was back with a white envelope in his hands.

"It didn't say much," he told them as he handed Lilly the envelope. "All it said was 'I hope she's burning in hell; that's where she should be. She deserved what happened to her and you will never find out who took her from you. She died like the dog she was'."

"Thank you Matthew for helping us out," Scotty told him as the were lead back to the front door. "We're doing everything we can to find out who did this."

"Just do it for Catalina; do it for my daughter," Matthew told them as his eyes went back the upstairs of the house. "She deserves to know what happened to the mom she never really got to meet."


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay, so I got a review about having more Scotty and Lilly in the story, so I will attempt to add in some more of them in later chapters. I do want to mention that, while this story does have them in it, the story is not about them. It's mostly going to be about the cold case. Hope that's okay with everyone **

**Phoenix's Arena-**

Kat and Will trailed behind the security guard who had offered to direct them to the court where the Phoenix's were practicing. The two were not being lead through the main entrance, but the private back way players used to get into the arena. Kat couldn't help but chuckle at Will's obvious gawking at the plain cement hallway they walked through.

"Okay Will, keep it together," she laughed. He only smiled at her and shook his head as the two walked on.

"Think of all the greats who walked through these halls Kat," he smiled. "We're literally walking in the footsteps of history."

"Maybe I should most of the talking once we get to the team," Kat sighed. Honestly, this was one of the parts of being a detective she wasn't too fond of. Interviewing suspects that the victim had loved, cherished, trusted and accusing them of hurting the victim broke her heart at times. She knew the burly man next to her felt the same way. The men they were about the interview weren't just basketball players. Many of them were so close to Matilda they saw her like a niece or daughter, and now the two detectives were about suggest they had strangled her and dumped her on the side of the road.

Kat and Will slowed their speed as the security guard turned and lead them through a large tunnel, from which they could see the Phoenix players warming up. Although it hurt Kat to think one of these men who had been so close to Matilda had hurt her, it wasn't a stretch to think they could have overpowered the petite girl in order to kill her. When the two detectives walked onto the court, Kat saw an older, grey haired man she recognized as Henry Waters turn his head from where he was standing and the two made eye contact. The man's stoic expression broke for a brief second and Kat saw a flash of pain in his eyes. In a second the pained expression vanished and the man turned back to his team.

"We're finished for today," he hollered to the men on the court who were busy with a drill. "There are some detectives who need to talk to some of you."

Kat couldn't help but notice some of the men hesitated to walk over to where she and Will were standing, as if they were willing to do anything to avoid them. The two detectives waited until the team staggered over to them, and it was obvious by the men's solemn expressions they knew what the detectives where there to talk about. The men stood as close to their coach as possible, taking comfort in the feeling of safety the older man brought them. Henry was not oblivious to their uneasiness as he began to speak to the team.

"As you all know," he began slowly with his eyes glued to the court. "There is new information on what happened to Matilda. I know talking about her isn't easy; that talking about her brings up memories that are difficult to handle. But she was a part of this team and she deserves all the help we can give her. Now, these detectives are here to ask all of you questions, and I know you'll give them your full support. Now detectives, how can we help you?"

Kat looked over to Will, who nodded at her to begin the conversation.

"My name is Detective Miller and this is Detective Jeffries," she began. "We know you were questioned about Matilda years ago, but there is new evidence now. I know all of you want to do what you can do for Matilda."

Kat looked at the men, some of them had their eyes to the ground, some were looking at their coach, but most were fixed on Kat and Will. There was eagerness in their eyes.

"Now, I know some of you were not on the team when Matilda died. If you weren't on the team, can you raise your hand?" she asked, and six of the fifteen men raised their hands. "A detective will be contacting you sometime this week, but for now you are free to leave."

The six men walked off the court and Kat could hear mumbles of goodbyes as they left. After they left, Kat turned back to Henry.

"Is it possible for you to provide contact information for players who are not on the team anymore who were on the team when she died?" She asked and he quickly nodded.

"I'll give you their numbers," he replied, "some of them aren't in Philly anymore, but the three that are were the ones that were closest to my granddaughter."

"That would be very helpful Mr. Waters," Will told him. "If you wouldn't mind sir, maybe you and I should talk in your office while my partner talks to your players."

"Of course, Detective, of course," he nodded as he get up from his seat and turned towards his players. "I'll see you boys later."

Kat waited until Will and Henry were out of sight before she began to talk to the men in front of her. She knew that there was a good chance even if one of them knew something that they were not going to tell her right in front of the other players. She just hoped that by talking to them it would inspire them to come forward privately later if they knew something.

"I heard something Patrick told someone that started all this," one of the players suddenly said. "He knew something about what happened to Matilda."

"That's right," Kat nodded. "That's why we are here asking you if you remember anything maybe a week or two before she died. Was she acting different? Did she say anything to any of you that would make you think something was wrong?"

"Nothing," A man that Kat recognized as Jack Blake responded. "She came to every practice; just like she always did."

"What about your games?" Kat asked. "She didn't go to the game that was two days before she died. Was that normal?"

"Yeah, that was pretty normal since she had Cat," Jack replied and the other players nodded their heads.

"She had been planning on coming though," a voice spoke up from the back of the group. Kat placed the face of the man who spoke as Tom Daniel, the team's star forward.

"Really?" Kat asked surprised. She hadn't heard anything about Matilda planning on coming before.

"Yeah, the game was in New York and I remember Matt was trying to get tickets to see a Broadway show Matilda had been wanting to see," he shrugged. "Matilda had asked my wife if she could watch Catalina, but a few days before the game Matilda told Meg she wasn't going to be going."

"Any idea why she decided not to go?" Kat asked and Tom shook his head, but Jack spoke up again instead.

"It was something about taking the night off for work," he told her. "I heard her talking to Henry the night before the game."

_Henry Waters's office-_

_Jack walked quickly to his coach's office, confident he knew what the discussion was going to be about; he was finally going to be chosen to be one of the team's starters. Max Scott was going to be retiring at the end of the season, leaving a space for Jack as a starter. As he approached the office, he noticed that the door was already open. He would have gone in but as he got closer he could hear that Henry wasn't alone._

"_Pop, I already told you why Cat and I can't come to the game," Jack heard the voice that he recognized as Matilda's say._

"_You work too hard Matilda," he heard Henry sigh. "You should be spending more time with Matthew and Catalina."_

"_Really Pop, you're going to talk to me about working too hard?" Matilda laughed. "You're sixty nine years old. You should be retired on a beach somewhere by now."_

"_The boy's aren't ready for me to leave them yet," Henry replied. _

"_I think you're the one who isn't ready to leave Pop," Matilda sighed. "I've got to go get to work. I'll see you when you get back from New York."_

_Jack could hear Matilda begin to walk towards the door, her heels clicking loudly on the floor. _

"_You don't ever sound excited to go to work anymore Sweetheart," Henry's voice stopped the sound of Matilda's foot steps. Jack had never heard Henry's voice that quite; that gentle. "Is something wrong?"_

"_No, nothings… wrong." She sighed. "It's just more difficult than I expected; that's all. Really Pop, I like helping with the training. I'm learning a lot."_

"_Okay, Matilda." Henry replied. "As long as you're sure."_

"I didn't think it was a big deal," Jack told Kat. "I asked Matthew on the way to the game if everything was okay with Matilda and he said it was. He's my best friend; he wouldn't have lied to me."

"Maybe Matilda didn't tell Matthew," Kat suggested, but almost instantly all the men shook their heads.

"No Detective," Tom replied. "Matilda told him everything."

The rest of the discussion didn't bring up anything else unusual. The player's agreed Matilda and Matthew had a good marriage, that she had seemed happy and hadn't been acting out of character. Nothing to suggest she was having a problem with her. Kat just hoped Will was having more luck with Henry.


	5. Chapter 5

"Mr. Waters, is there anything that you want to tell me about Matilda?" Will asked as he sat in front of Henry Waters's desk. "The information we recently received was from one of her coworkers. Was Matilda having trouble at work?"

"Not that I know of," Henry said. "She was tired of course. She was a mom, a wife, and had a job that she felt that she had to succeed at."

"What do you mean by that?" Will asked.

"Matilda had dreams, big dreams," Henry said, smiling at the thought of his granddaughter. "She had her eye on being a coach, but she felt like she had to prove to everyone that she earned that job. If she couldn't cut it helping train referees, she didn't think anyone would think she deserved to get an assistant coaching job."

Will knew was Henry was saying was accurate. Matilda had been in the world of basketball her entire life. Since her grandfather was one of the greatest coaches in the leagues history, Matilda must have felt she needed to prove she didn't just get her job because of Henry.

"What about Matthew?" Will asked. "Were they having any problems?"

"No, nothing like that," Henry said, violently shaking his head. "He was good to her. He would never do anything to hurt her."

"Did she have any ex boyfriends that may have had a problem with her?" Will asked.

"Matthew had been her first boyfriend," Henry told him. "Matthew had a few ex girlfriends, but as far as I know he didn't have much contact with any of them."

"No one had a problem with Matilda?" Will asked. "I know your granddaughter was a good girl, but she wasn't perfect. There's no one you can think of that had something against her?"

"She had just fired her nanny before she died," Henry said. "She said it was because Matthew's mom had just moved to Philadelphia and wanted to help watch Catalina."

"But they had never fought?" Will asked.

"Not that Matilda or Matthew had told me," Henry sighed. "But I'm starting to find out there is a lot about my granddaughter that I didn't know about."

"What do you mean?" Will asked.

"Her fight with Luther for one," He said. "Matthew only told me about that a last year. I'm sure Matthew told the other detectives about it."

"But you don't think the problem was serious?" Will asked. He didn't even need to ask about what the fight may have been about, he remembered vividly the day that Luther had quoted Matilda on national television.

"I hadn't even noticed they had been fighting, so no Detective," Henry said.

"You and your granddaughter were close Mr. Waters, why wouldn't have Matilda told you about the fight?" Will asked.

"I was having some heart problems around then," Henry sighed. "Matilda probably didn't want me to worry. She could fight her own battles; she didn't need me stepping in."

Will recalled the time Henry was talking about; it had only been a few months before Matilda had died. In his entire career until that point, Henry had missed only two games. However, for a week Henry had been absent from practices and games. His trusted assistant coach, Pete Hank, had coached the games, but Henry's absence was enough of an abnormality to worry fans.

"Now that I think of it, Matilda had been acting strangely then," Henry said.

"How so?" Will asked.

"She seemed… different when she came to visit me," Henrys said. "But only when Mike was there. She seemed uncomfortable around him."

"Mike Bern?" Will asked. "What trouble would she have with the team's owner?"

"I didn't think about it much, I was too tired," Henry sighed. "I thought it just had to do something with Rick, Mike's son. Rick had always had a crush on Matilda and he seemed a little depressed when Matilda had gotten married."

"Matilda had been married over two years when she died," Will said. "Rick wasn't over it yet?"

"Oh, I think he was. He had just had his trouble with girlfriends, that's all." Henry said. "I think was disappointed Matilda was moving on with her life and he wasn't. The two had practically grown up together but Matilda was doing more with her life."

"But the two had never fought?" Will asked.

"Detective, Rick is one of the kindest men you will ever meet. He wanted the best for Matilda; he was a lost kid, that's all." Henry said.

"Do you think he would be open to talking to us?" Will asked. Will was sure Rick had been interviewed when Matilda had died but talking to him couldn't hurt.

"Of course detective, he's actually in his father's office down the hall; I'll go see if he can talk," Henry said, briskly walking out the room until he hesitated once he reached the door. He turned around to face Will as he stood in the doorway.

"I'm an old man detective. I don't like to admit it, but I am. I'm a tired old man who can't leave this game because, if I do leave this team, I don't know what I will do with the pain I have in my heart. Please, find out what happened to Matilda, so this old man can just spend the last of his days with his great-granddaughter."

And with that, Henry walked out of the room, leaving Will to digest what he had said. Will knew it was hard enough for families to move on once cases were solved; dealing with the grief when all the questions lingered was more pain than Will could imagine. After a few minutes, Henry walked into the room with a tall, thirty something man with blonde hair. Will stood up to shake his hand as Henry began to walk out.

"I'll give you two time to talk," Henry said as he left. "Rick, you can take my seat."

"Henry said you wanted to talk to me about Matilda," Rick said as he sat down in Henry's seat. "I'm afraid I don't think I know much that could help you."

"You two had known each other your entire lives," Will said. "She hadn't said anything to you that made you think she was in some sort of trouble; that someone had a problem with her?"

"Matilda and I had been a little… distant for a few years," Rick said sheepishly.

"Yes, Henry had told me about your feelings toward her," Will said. "Had that caused a problem between you two?"

"That wasn't why we were having problem detective," Rick told him, clearly surprised at Will's suggestion. "Matilda was upset about my father."

"Your father?" Will asked. "Why was she upset about him?"

"She overreacted, that's all," Rick said. "She had gotten so paranoid, especially when Henry got sick."

"_What the hell Rick?" Matilda screamed as she stormed into Rick's office at the arena. "What the hell is your father trying to pull?"_

"_I have no idea what you're talking about," Rick said as he looked up from his paper work. Matilda looked disheveled as she ran her hands through her hair. _

"_You know what I'm talking about Rick," Matilda said as she paced around the room. "You're father is trying to get rid of my grandfather. After all he has done for this franchise, this is how he repays him?"_

"_Matilda, calm down," Rick said as he got up from his desk. He took Matilda's shaking body and led her into a seat. He sat next to her as he gave her time to catch her breath. "Tell me what happened."_

"_The other night, after the game, I heard your dad talking to Pete," she said. "He kept telling Pete how he'll do great things for this team once my grandfather is gone."_

"_Matilda, I'm sure he just meant-"Rick began but Matilda cut him off._

"_No Rick, he didn't say once he retired or even once he left. Gone Rick, gone," Matilda repeated as she continued to practically shake. "My grandfather made this franchise an empire and your father is just waiting for the day he dies."_

"_Come on Matilda, you know my father is better than that," Rick said, taking Matilda's hand. "My father knows this team needs your grandfather. We'll need a new coach one day, but not until your grandfather is ready to retire."_

"_That won't be for a long time," Matilda said. "Your father better know that."_

"_Believe me Matilda, my father is in no rush for your grandfather to leave," Rick replied. "Are you okay now?"_

"_Yeah, I'm fine," Matilda sighed. "Just don't tell your father about this, okay?"_

"_Of course Matilda," Rick assured her._

"Did Matilda ever bring up your father trying to replace Henry again?" Will asked.

"He wasn't trying to replace Henry, but no Detective; she never brought it up again." Rick said.

"And she never confronted your father?" Will asked.

"No, not that I know of," Rick replied. "But if you ever have anymore questions for me, don't hesitate to call and ask me."

Will wasn't sure if Matilda had been on the right track but Will couldn't help but think that a woman like Matilda would have confronted Mike. Her family was clearly everything to her, and he doubted someone possibly betraying her grandfather was going to sit well with her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry it's taken a long time to update. I'm in college and fanfiction just can't be my priority a lot of the time. Hope you enjoy and please review!**

Scotty listened to the sound of traffic outside his window as he lay in bed, Lilly fast asleep in his arms. The two hadn't moved in together despite being together almost a year, but he wasn't concerned. He knew Lilly and she was not the kind of person to trust easily. He didn't mind, not usually, but this case was getting to him. Matilda and Matthew had thought they had plenty of time to be together too, and look what happened to them. He was pulled out of his thoughts when Lilly shifted to turn to face him.

"You need to get sleep Scotty," Lilly sighed, her eyes barely open.

"I know Lil, I know," he said. "Just thinking, that's all."

"About Matilda?" She asked. She didn't blame him for taking the case home with him. She was just as frustrated with the progress of the case, or lack thereof. There just didn't seem to be anyone who had a motive to kill her.

"Yeah, I guess." He said. "Nick and Will are talking to Matilda's boss tomorrow, but I doubt they'll get anything from him. He was interviewed over and over when Matilda died since he was the last one to see her alive."

"Maybe Luther will give us something," Lilly said. "He should be getting into Philly around noon tomorrow."

"We have to be missing something Lil," Scotty said. "None of this is making sense."

"Maybe it'll make more sense in the morning once you've actually gotten sleep," she said groggily, burying her face into her pillow.

"Yeah I know Lil," he sighed. "I don't think I'll be getting sleep for a while."

"I know Scotty, I know," Lilly replied. "I keep thinking about Matilda's little girl."

"She'll be okay, she's got her dad and grandparents," Scotty said, but Lilly shook her head.

"No, Scotty. That just isn't the same," Lilly said. "You don't get it because you always had your mom around but believe me; not having your mom around makes things rough. No one should have to go through not having a parent around."

"I know it was hard on you Lil," he said, kissing the top of her head. "You turned out fine though."

"Hardly," she laughed. There was a moment of silence before Lilly gathered her courage to tell Scotty what she had been thinking for days. "Do you think about what would happen if you got hurt? Once you have kids I mean."

"Yeah, sure," he replied. "I don't want to leave my kids without a father, but that isn't going to stop me from having kids. What about you?"

"I really don't know Scotty," she said, not looking into his eyes. "Isn't it selfish for us to have kids? Is it selfish to bring kids into this world when we aren't sure if we are going to be here tomorrow?"

"Come on Lil, no one is certain how long they have," he told her. "Healthy people just drop dead everyday."

"It isn't the same Scotty. We're putting ourselves in the line of fire everyday," she said.

"To keep this city safe," he told her. "We're making this city safer for the kids we are going to have."

Lilly just didn't know if she could handle having kids and be a cop. She knew this was something that could push Scotty away, but she was trying to be something at least close to an adult. Scotty needed to know she wasn't sure she was quite on board with having kids.

"Maybe," she sighed. "I'm just not sure it's worth it."

"Of course it's worth it Lil," he said, "I've seen the way my brother is with his kids. That kind of love is something I don't think you want to miss out on Lil. You'd be an incredible mom."

"I'm sure," she laughed as she drew the covers close to her face. "Now get some sleep, we've got a long day tomorrow."

"Okay Lil," he said as he kissed her on the head again. "Love you."

"Love you too," Lilly sighed and they both drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Kat was busy working on paper work in the station room when she noticed the room had gotten oddly silent. Once she looked up, she knew why. Luther Yale, who had retired from his position as the Gladiators point guard almost fifteen years ago, was walking up to her desk.

"Mr. Yale, we thought you weren't going to be coming to Philadelphia until this afternoon," she said as she stood up to shake his hand.

"I was able to get out of a meeting," he responded. "I told them Matilida was more important than investors."

"We really appreciate you coming to talk to us Mr. Yale. I'm Detective Williams," she told him. "If you want to me follow me we can talk in private."

Luther nodded and followed Kat into one of the interrogation rooms. Luther took a seat and Kat sat directly across from him.

"I still don't believe Patrick had anything to do with this," he said. "He was her friend."

"Is there anyone you do think was involved?" Kat asked.

"No, but you probably think I was," Luther grunted.

"Because of the argument you two had?" Kat asked. "From what Matthew told us, she was pretty upset about what you had done."

"I apologized to her Detective," Luther said, shaking his head. "I wasn't thinking and I knew I screwed up. But Matilida knew I was sorry, she wasn't angry with me when she died."

"Was there anyone she was angry with when she died?" Kat asked. "Did she tell you if anyone was bothering her?"

"She was frustrated when she died Detective," he said. "More than frustrated really."

"About what?" Kat asked.

"She was tired of waiting for someone to believe in her," Luther said.

_Matilda had been on edge the entire dinner. Luther hadn't pressed her about it since it had been their first dinner together since their fight. He had offered to drive her home so she wouldn't have to get a cab, but also so they could have a chance to talk in privacy._

"_So when are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" Luther asked, but Matilda continued looking out her window._

"_Nothing is bothering me Luther," she sighed but Luther shook his head._

"_Come on kid, I've known you since you were born," he said. "You've never been that great at hiding things."_

"_You sure I can trust you again?" She asked. Luther wasn't hurt by the comment, he knew he had broken her trust and it would take a while to earn it back._

"_It's just between you and me," he said and Matilda nodded her head._

"_He said no," Matilda said. "One of the assistant coaches is stepping down and my Pop said I couldn't replace him."_

"_Come on Kid, do you really think you're ready for that?" He asked. Matilda was a smart girl and he knew she had her grandfather's incredible coaching abilities. But coaching in the NBA was a big step from her coaching high school aged kids._

"_Yes, I do and I really wish other people could see that," she said. "Why does no one think I can do this? Plenty guys have been made assistant coaches when they are my age! Why can't I?"_

"_Maybe because Henry doesn't want people thinking you only got the job because you're his granddaughter," Luther said._

"_You know I've been afraid of that my entire life Luther," she said. "But I know now no one else is going to give me this chance. He has to give me this job, he just has to."_

"_But he said no," Luther reminded her. "Henry doesn't change his mind once it's made up."_

"_Then this will be a first," Matilda smiled. "Can't you see it Luther, me on that bench next to all those guys who don't think a woman will ever be a head coach?"_

"_If anyone is going to do it, it's going to be you Matilda," He said. "But you have to be patient. Keep working with the referee department. You'll learn things that will make you a better coach."_

"_Come on, you and I both know I was born to do this," she said. "I see basketball differently than everyone else. I've been watching my Pop coach this game my entire life and I need to start getting real experience."_

"_Maybe you should wait for another team to ask you to be an assistant coach," Luther suggested, but Matilda violently shook her head._

"_Luther, the Phoenix team is my family. This is where I belong and I'm never going to coach another team," she sternly said. _

"_Just like Henry, stubborn as hell," Luther laughed._

"_I'm going to talk to him again tomorrow," she said. "I know he believes in me."_

"_I believe too Kid," he sighed. "I believe too."_

"Did Matilda ever tell you what Henry said when she confronted him again?" Kat asked.

"No, but Justin Lynn was made an assistant coach, so we know what his answer was," Luther said.

"Okay, so Henry turned down Matilda when she thought her golden opportunity had come up," Kat said. "Any idea how Matilda would have responded? I know you said she didn't want to go to another team, but maybe she got tired of Henry giving her the chance she wanted and Henry didn't like that."

"I don't know Detective, I really don't," Luther said. "Matilda was just as stubborn as her grandfather, but he loved her. I can't imagine he would hurt her just because she wanted to go to another team."

"You wouldn't believe what I've seen people do to the people they love," Kat sighed. "That you just wouldn't believe."


	7. Chapter 7

**Please review! **

"So how well did you know Matilda?" Will asked Steven Squire, the president of the NBA referee association and Matilda's former boss. Will and Nick had gone to interview Steven early in the morning, hoping they would be back to the station by the time Luther Yale would be there.

"I'm afraid not very well Detective," he told Will. "Patrick had a more active role in her training here."

"So there was nothing going on between you two?" Nick asked. He was doubtful, but Steven was known as a ladies man. He was in his late forties but time had been kind to him. His tanned skin and blonde hair probably didn't hurt when he tried to pick up women either.

"I'm flattered Detective, but Matilda was a happily married women and," he smiled and laughed, "Matilda was a little out of my league."

"Out of your league?" Will asked, a little surprised. "From what I've heard, you don't seem to think you're out of anyone's league."

"Matilda was… different than any woman I've ever met. She saw this world so differently than the rest of us," he told them. "Drive, that's what she was, driven. Nothing was going to stop that woman from getting what she wanted, and I sure as hell wasn't going to try and keep up with her."

"Someone that driven must make some enemies," Nick said. "Anyone she ran over to get where she wanted to be maybe a little angry at her?"

"Since the day she died I've wracked my brain of anyone in this office who may have wanted to hurt her and I can't think of a single person," Steven sighed. "Not one."

"Mr. Squire, we know this office was involved somehow. Patrick confessed on his death bed to helping cover it up," Nick reminded him. "You're trying to tell us one of your employees was involved in another employee's murder and you had no idea all these years?"

"He was shaken up that morning, but so were the rest of us here when we heard she had died," Steven told them. "We didn't even know anything was wrong until we turned on our TV's that morning."

This story didn't sound too far fetched to Nick and Will. Matilda hadn't even been reported missing when a driver had spotted something in a field and had pulled over to investigate. The medical examiner had estimated Matilda had been killed almost as soon as she had gotten off work.

"And you didn't see Matilda leave work that day?" Will asked and Steven shook his head.

"Her cubicle was across the building from my office," he told them. "From what I heard after she died, she had car trouble that morning and had taken a cab to work. Supposedly a cab was supposed to be picking her up."

"The report from the can company said Matilda never got into that cab," Nick said and Steven nodded.

"The cab showed up but Matilda wasn't waiting by the front door. The driver called her cell phone but she never picked up," he told them. "But all anyone here saw was Matilda walk out the front door at eight."

"Did she always work that late?" Will asked. This sounded a little unusual to him because someone with a young child probably wanted to get home as soon as possible.

"It depended if Matthew was at home with Catalina," Steven explained. "Matthew's mom had moved to Philadelphia to help watch the baby, but Matilda said she always wanted one parent home with Catalina."

"So about Patrick, did Matilda spend most of her time with him?" Nick asked.

"For the last three months before she died, yes, that's usually where you could fin her," he said," Shadowing Patrick and trying to learn everything she could."

"Matilda hadn't been working here that long and she was already working with the Vice President. That must have made some of her coworkers upset." Nick said.

"Some," Steven nodded, "But they knew how talented she was and that she deserved where she was. I can't even remember who made comments about her to me, it was that insignificant."

"Matilda never complained about people being jealous?" Will asked.

"Matilda only came to my office once to talk alone," Steven said, "And it wasn't about her coworkers being jealous."

_Steven looked up from his paperwork when he heard a light knocking at his office door. _

"_Mr. Squire?" The door was open, but Matilda was standing awkwardly in front of the threshold. She looked as if she didn't even know where she was supposed to stand. _

"_You can come in and sit Matilda," he smiled. "Just shut the door behind you."_

_She did what he asked and she sat in the seat across from his desk. After a few moments of awkward silence, Matilda looked Steven in the eyes and began to speak._

"_This may not be my business at all Mr. Squire, I know that, but I still thought you should know," she said. _

"_If you have any concerns about how this department is running you know you can let me know Matilda," he said. "What seems to be the problem?"_

"_Again, I'm sure it's nothing at all, it's just… have you seen the new referees that are being trained?" She asked._

"_No, I haven't had a chance. Why, do you think there's a problem?" he asked. _

"_Not a problem really, just something seems off about a few of them," she said. "They're good refs but they have barely being refereeing."_

"_What do you mean by barely?" Steven asked. Hiring referees to be trained wasn't his job, but he still felt the need to make sure all the ones that were being hired were qualified. _

"_Two of them were only coaching college basketball for five years," she told him. "You know referees are usually only hired if they've been refereeing for over ten years."_

"_Well, I'm sure Patrick thought he could make an exception," Steven told here. "Have you talked to him yourself about this?"_

"_No," she said, looking briefly to the floor. "I didn't want him to think I thought he was bad at his job, but I just felt I should tell someone about this. Something isn't right Mr. Squire, you have to believe me."_

"_I'm sure it's nothing Matilda, but I'll talk to Patrick anyway," he told her. "I won't tell him it was you who brought it up, so you won't have anything bad to feel about."_

"And was it nothing?" Will asked.

"Look Detective, I understood why Matilda was a little nervous," Steven said. "We had just dealt with the scandal of referees betting on their own games. She was just looking out for the game, that's all."

"What did Patrick say when you asked him about those two referees," Nick asked.

"The same thing I had told Matilda. That usually referees are hired after ten years of experience, but sometimes exceptions are made," he said. "As far as I know, Matilda never mentioned any of her concerns to Patrick."

"Thank you Mr. Squire, you've been a lot of help," Will told him as he stood to shake his hand. "We'll be in contact if we have any more questions for you."

"Of course Detective," he said as he shook Nick's hand. "I want to help her anyway I can."

"Well, that was Kat," Nick told Will as the drove back to the station. "Yale already came by for his interview."

"Damn," Will muttered. "Another missed opportunity to meet a great."

"Just be thankful he didn't say anything to make Kat think he's a murder," Nick said.

"Did Kat mention what he did have to say?" Will asked. If anyone could tell them if Matilda had an enemy, it very well could be Luther.

"Yeah, that Matilda had been planning on confronting her grandfather about an assistant coaching job," Nick said.

"Now that's surprising," Will told him. "Henry never mentioned a confrontation when I interviewed him."

"Well, you'll have a chance to ask him about it this afternoon," Nick told him. "Kat asked Henry to come to the station so you could interview him again."

"Wonderful," Will sighed. "Accusing people of murdering their grandchildren never gets old."


	8. Chapter 8

**Again, please review! I'm getting a lot of views and it's not that I want attention or praise; it's just helpful for me to get feedback for when I write other stories. Thank you!**

Normally, Will liked to conduct interviews. After all, that's why a patrol cop usually decides to become a detective. There is a significant difference between patrolling the streets and solving crimes. It isn't for every cop, but it had been the road Will had wanted to take. He hadn't known it would lead to times like these though, staring into the eyes of a victim's family member who looked half scared to death and half just plain angry. He hadn't known sometimes he wouldn't want to hear someone's confession.

"Why didn't you tell me about the fight you had with your granddaughter?" Will asked. The stark and cold interrogation room was a very different place than the warm and inviting office the two had been in just days before.

"What argument Detective?" Henry asked. "Matilda and I never argued."

"Never?" Will asked, feigning surprise. "Not even about a position as an assistant coach?"

"I don't know who you've been speaking with Detective, but Matilda and I never argued about that. She came into my office one day and asked me if she could have the job. I told her no and that was it." Henry said. He was trying to speak calmly, but his body language was giving it away that he was less than thrilled to speak about this particular subject.

"But that's not where she ended it Henry," Will told him. "Matilda came back to talk about it again. She went to your office to make you give her that job and she wasn't going to leave until you said yes. What happened that day, because I know you said no."

"Nothing Detective, nothing," Henry sighed. "She was so anxious to start her career but I told her to be patient. I told her she had plenty of time she never got to have."

"_About that no you gave me earlier" Matilda said as she charged into Henry's office, "I just can't accept that Pop. I'm sorry, but I just can't."_

"_Is that right?" Henry chuckled, barely looking up from the paperwork on his desk. "You're telling me you know more than I do now?"_

"_Of course not," she sighed, "but you can't say no. I need this job Pop."_

_Sighing, Henry placed his pen on his down on his desk and pointed for Matilda to sit down in the seat in front of him. Did she really think he wanted to turn her down or that he wanted to take away something from her that she had always wanted? Yes, he could easily give her the assistant coach job. But that was the problem. He had never taught his children, grandchildren or players things in life came easy._

"_Matilda, my final answer is no," he told her. _

"_Pop, you have-" Matilda began but Henry cut her off._

"_What have I always told you and your brother about life?" Henry asked. _

"_That no one owes us anything," she sighed. _

"_Yet, you keep telling me something different," he said, this time a little annoyed. "I don't have to give you anything Matilda. The fact you're my granddaughter doesn't mean I have to give you a job."_

"_I know that Pop, I didn't really mean it that way," she told him, guilt filling her eyes. "But this could be my big break."_

"_You're break is coming Honey," he laughed. "Just wait for it."_

"_Is that break… is that break with another team?" Matilda said, almost whispering._

"_I don't know," he replied softly. "Maybe it would be better for you to go to another team and learn things from them."_

"_But I don't want to learn things from them," Matilda protested. "This team's culture is the only kind of culture I want to be around. I want to be around a team that values strong characters over egos. I want to be around players who are happy when their teammates succeed, not jealous. I want to be around the culture you built."_

"_Then maybe you should wait until a new coach comes along," Henry said. "You'll have to prove to another coach that you deserve this job, but you'll still be with the Phoenix family."_

"_And when will that be Pop?" Matilda asked softly, smiling. "You love this team and I don't think you'll be ready anytime soon to leave them."_

"_You're probably right," he softly chuckled. "Maybe just one more championship, just one more championship to prove to the world what these guys can do."_

"_They want to do it one more time for you," Matilda smiled. "Those guys love you like a dad. They want to pay you back for everything you've given them, and that's what I want to do for you. I want to be a coach so everything you've built can live on."_

"_I know Honey, I know," he told her as he reached across the desk and held her hand. "But you have to be patient. You're time is coming, just trust me on that."_

"If that's all that happened why didn't you tell us about this before?" Will asked.

"Tell you what?" Henry asked, his face suddenly becoming flushed, tears forming in his eyes. "Tell you I'm the reason my granddaughter is dead? Do you want me to tell if I would have given her that job she would be still alive? It's my fault she was at that building that night. This is my entire fault!"

Will had seen some pretty emotional responses when interrogating suspects, but he had to admit, this reaction had surprised him. Maybe it was because Will had seen him on TV for almost twenty years, but it felt to him that he knew Henry. Will had seen a lot of emotions from Henry on the court, but he had never seen the man come close to tears.

"None of this is your fault," Will told Henry, who was wiping the tears away from his eyes. "We'll get the person who did this to Matilda, I'll promise you that. This is a team who will never give up."

* * *

Scotty had interviewed some pretty high-profile people on the job before, but this day was taking the cake. He couldn't believe Frank Rogers, Barry Rosen, and Hank Hicks were sitting right in front of him or that he was actually sitting in Roger's living room. The Frank Rogers he kept telling himself. The Frank Rogers who had led the Phoenix team to five championships, including the one won the year after Matilda died. Frank had retired the year Matilda died, and the two others had retired the next year. Rosen and Hicks had been just important to the franchise, and all three were future hall of famer players. But these players hadn't just been players to Matilda. They had watched her grow up and had all been uncles to her. The grief Matilda's death had caused them was still clearly with them as Scotty and Lilly gently interviewed them.

"Had any of you spoken to Matilda before her death?" Lilly asked and all three shook their heads.

"Matilda had been a little in her head before she died," Frank told her.

"What do you mean by that?" Lilly asked. "Was that kind of thing unusual for her?"

"Not really," Hank shrugged. "She got that way sometimes. She would be thinking about something for a while and kind of forget about the rest of the world for a while. She got that way right before she got married and right before she had Cat. Sometimes she just needed to be alone."

"Do you know what was Matilda thinkin' about?" Scotty asked. "What was makin' her live inside her head?"

"That assistant coach job maybe," Barry suggested and the others nodded. "She was disappointed she hadn't gotten the job, so I didn't think much of it when she seemed a little distant."

"But she never told any of you what was actually bothering you?" Lilly asked, hoping Matilda had confided in one of her uncles.

"We would have known if Matilda was in some sort of trouble," Hank told her confidently. "I joined this team when she was six Detectives, I knew everything about her."

"I'm not tryin' to be rude here guys, but Matilda made someone made enough to strangle her," Scotty told the men curtly, "but so far all we've heard is no one was angry at her. That just couldn't be possible because Patrick confessed to help coverin' up her murder."

"None of us even knew Patrick," Barry told Scotty. "We don't know what or who he was involved with, and we don't know why he would want her dead."

"What do you mean by involved with?" Lilly asked. "We haven't heard anything to suggest Patrick was involved in anything questionable."

Barry looked to Frank and the slightly older man nodded. It took a few moments for Barry to gather his words and it was clear by the wringing of his hands he wasn't too comfortable talking about what he had to say.

"I didn't say anything about it when she died because I didn't know he had been involved," Barry told them defensively. "I'm still not sure what I heard was even true."

"Whatever you heard, it's important you tell us," Lilly told him reassuringly. "It's our job to verify it." Barry nodded and took a deep breath.

"We were playing the Storm when I heard about it. Some of us had gone out to dinner with some of the Storm players, the guys we were friends with, and we let one of the Storm's rookies tag along," Barry explained. "It was an early game, one of the first of the season, and I could tell something was bothering the kid. I asked one of my friends about it but he just brushed me off, saying the kid was just nervous."

"But you didn't think so," Scotty said and Barry nodded.

"I could tell the guy had something on his mind, so later when we got to a bar I took him outside to get air," Barry said. "I asked him if he was okay and he said yeah, but I could tell he wasn't telling the truth. So I pressed him some more."

"And what did he say?" Lilly asked.

"That he had been… approached," Barry said simply.

"Approached?" Scotty asked. "What does that mean?"

"That's what I asked him," Barry replied. "He told me that a bookie had approached him, but not one of those scummy guys, he was one of those real high-end bookies, the ones real rich guys used. He swore to me he had never gambled, but one of his uncles had, and that's why he thought this guy had approached him."

"Approached him for what?" Scotty asked, but he had a sinking feeling he knew the answer.

"I think you can guess Detective," Barry sighed. "He offered him forty grand to throw a game."

"He offered him forty grand to lose a game?" Lilly asked. "Why would he think this player could do that? I thought you said he was just a rookie?"

"He was but he was a closer," Barry told him. "That kid could sink a three under any kind of pressure. The Storm counted on him to score big shots at the end of games. This bookie didn't just pick any game; he picked a game between the Storm and the Heard. Those games that been decided by three points or less for the past two seasons."

"As atrocious as this is, what does it have to do with Patrick?" Lilly asked.

"As you can imagine, the kid wasn't too thrilled with someone asking him to take a bribe," Barry told them. "He went to his uncle and practically threatened to kill him until he told him who this bookie was working for."

"Patrick," Scotty sighed and Barry nodded.

"His uncle didn't know for sure," he told them, "but he guessed."

"Why would the vice president of the referee committee approach a player to throw a game?" Lilly asked. "Why wouldn't he go to a referee?"

"The bookie had told the kid that bribing a referee was too risky," Barry replied. "The referee scandal had just blown over, but his client needed money and he needed it fast."

"What did you tell the kid to do?" Scotty asked and Barry just laughed.

"I told him to sink those threes," Barry smiled. "And he did."

"Did you tell Matilda about this?" Lilly asked and Barry nodded, but this time looking toward the floor.

"I told her it was just a rumor, that I had no idea if what true or not. I told her not to get involved unless she saw something for sure that proved Patrick was dirty," he said. "But knowing Matilda I'm sure she couldn't stay away."

"She never told any of us she ever confronted Patrick," Hank told them. "If she would have, she would have told us."

"Thank you three for your help," Scotty said as he and Lilly got up to shake the men's hands. "You've been a big help."

* * *

Scotty drove he and Lilly back to the station as Lilly called Stillman to tell him they had learned some pretty important information.

"What he say?" Scotty asked after Lilly got off the phone.

"He wants us to go over everything together again," she said. "He thinks it's going to help us get focused."

"I know we're the voice of the victim Lil, but sometimes…" Scotty drifted off and Lilly nodded.

"I know Scotty, I know," she sighed. "Sometimes, I don't want to know what happened."

"Whoever killed that girl, she trusted them," Scotty grumbled. "How could they look into the eyes of someone who trusted them and strangle the life out of them?"

"I don't know Babe," Lil sighed, "but we have to get justice for Matilda, even if that means bringing even more pain to her family."

Scotty only nodded but he felt better when they stopped at a red light and Lilly held his hand. The feeling of her love made everything seem a little better.


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry it took so long to write this chapter but I've been pretty busy with family stuff. Hope you like this chapter as its purpose is to basically sum up what the team has learned so far and also show a little more of Scotty and Lilly's relationship. As always, please review!**

"Is it just me," Nick sighed as he plopped into his desk chair, "or is nothing about this case making any sense?"

Even though it was almost eight at night, Stillman has asked all of his detectives to gather so they could try to get a clearer focus on the case. As it was, it felt as if all their ideas and evidence was scattered. He was standing in front of the room, staring at the evidence board with Will, when Lilly and Scotty walked in the room.

"I feel you Nick," Scotty sighed as he and Lilly walked to their desk. Lilly took a seat in her chair and began to drink her coffee, but Scotty chose to lean against her desk. "This girl somehow got herself into a whole lot of trouble."

"As far as I can tell, Luther Yale had zero motive to kill Matilda," Kat told them from her desk chair. "He admitted they had argued, but he sounded pretty convincing when he said he and Matilda had made up."

"Her mom and husband said the same thing," Lilly nodded. "According to them, Matilda had been pretty upset when the argument happened, but she had let it go a long time before she died."

"Speaking of her mom and husband," Will said, "neither of them mentioned Matilda arguing with Henry?"

"No," Lilly shook her head. "That's a big thing to leave out. What did they fight about?"

"Fight is probably too strong of a word," Will said. "Matilda wanted an assistant coaching job that was open and Henry said no."

"And Matilda was fine with that? She just walked away with a no for an answer?" Kat asked. From what she had been hearing about this young woman, rejection was not something she would have taken easily.

"Henry said they talked about it and he convinced her to be patient," Nick said. "I think she was more anxious than angry."

"Do you think Matilda maybe went above Henry to get the job?" Stillman asked.

"You mean like going to the general manager of the team?" Scotty asked and Stillman nodded.

"No way," Scotty shook his head. "Boss, Matilda worshiped her grandfather. There's no way she would have gone behind his back."

"Loyalty and honesty," Will said, "two things the Phoenix team prides themselves on. Matilda would have never questioned Henry's final decision."

"Besides, according to Henry, she was having some issues with the general manager's son," Will told them. "I talked about the issue with the son Rick, but his dad Mike hasn't been available for an interview until tomorrow."

"I'm interviewing him when he get's here in the morning," Nick told the team. "Who knows if he has anything helpful to say?"

"I'm starting to feel that it couldn't have been anyone in the Phoenix family," Kat said. "I don't think Matilda would have made anyone within the team feel like she was willing to out them if they had done something wrong. That team was her life."

"Basketball was her life," Scotty objected. "If Matilda thought someone was risking the reputation of the game, she would have blown the whistle. Wouldn't have mattered if they were in the Phoenix family or not."

"One of the old Phoenix players told us something pretty important," Lilly said, looking at Scotty. "According to him, a bookie had approached a Storm player to blow a game,"

"What does that have to do with Matilda?" Stillman asked.

"The kid got his uncle to tell him who the bookie was workin' for," Scotty said. "Barry said the he uncle wasn't positive, but he thought it might be Patrick."

"This bookie went after a player, not a ref?" Nick asked.

"The uncle told the kid the bookie thought it was too risky to go after a ref when the scandal was still blowing over." Scotty told them.

"And I'm guessing Barry told Matilda about this mess," Stillman said and Scotty nodded.

"Barry told Matilda not to confront Patrick, but who knows," Lilly said. "The guys said Matilda never mentioned confronting Patrick, but she could have just not told them."

"Or maybe she confronted him the night she died," Kat suggested. The team nodded in agreement since it was one of the most logical motives they had thought of so far. If Patrick felt his career was in danger, maybe he panicked and strangled Matilda.

"But in the tape Patrick said he helped cover it up, not that he killed her," Lilly said.

"Maybe he was scared, didn't want to confess to the whole thing," Will suggested but Lilly shook her head.

"On his death bed?" she asked. "He was already admitting to a crime on tape, why wouldn't he just confess to the entire thing? He asked the priest to come and he asked to be taped. No one forced this out of him, so why would he hide something?"

"Okay, if Patrick didn't kill Matilda, then who did?" Stillman sighed, staring yet again at the evidence board. In front of him was at least twenty pictures of significant people in Matilda's life, but he stopped at a particular picture. Scotty noticed his boss's odd reaction at the picture.

"What you thinkin' about boss?" Scotty asked.

"Matilda's boss, Squire," Stillman said, "he had no idea that the vice president was trying to bribe players to blow games? I just can't believe that."

"He barely got to hold onto his job when the referee scandal broke out," Kat said. "If I were him, I would have been keeping a close watch out for any suspicious behavior. If he didn't see this, he didn't want to."

"Matilda went to him before when she thought there was something weird going on with the new referees," Will said. "I think Matilda would have gone to him if she thought Patrick was really taking bribes."

"If there was someone in this scheme with him, I would put my money on Squire," Stillman said. "Who else could have covered up Patrick's tracks? Will and Nick, take another crack at Squire tomorrow. Kat will handle the interview with Mike when he gets here tomorrow. Until then, everyone go home and get some sleep for once."

After a chorus of "goodnight" and "see you", the team finally managed to head home. Of course, Lilly and Scotty drove home in different cars, but they both ended up at Lilly's house. Scotty followed Lilly into the house and headed to the kitchen.

"You hungry Lil?" he called from the kitchen as Lilly hung up their coats in the hall closet.

"Yeah, make whatever," she called as she took off her boots. She padded into the kitchen and sat on the counter, watching Scotty cook.

"You look nice tonight Lil," Scotty smiled but Lilly just grunted.

"Yeah right Scotty," she laughed. "I haven't slept in days and I look like a mess."

"A cute mess," Scotty smiled as he flipped the pancake he was making. Lilly didn't respond to the remark as she watched him continue to cook.

"Pancakes for dinner?" She asked.

"I'm tired, give me a break," Scotty laughed as he placed the pancake on a plate and handed it to Lilly. She reached into the drawer next to her and pulled out a fork, eating the pancake as Scotty made his own.

"Maybe this is why we shouldn't have kids," Lilly mumbled, not looking at Scotty when she spoke.

"What?" Scotty said, trying to focus on both Lilly and the dinner in front of him.

"Scotty, we're home at nine at night having pancakes for dinner," she said. "What about that makes you think we're fit to have kids?"

"It'll be different when we have kids," Scotty shrugged.

"That's what people always say," Lilly sighed. "Look Scotty, I don't want to have kids just to have them raised by a babysitter."

"And neither do I Lil, but we're cops. We can't just stop being cops once we have kids," he said. "But what I can promise you is that I would make our kids and you my first priority when I had the choice."

"Me too," she nodded, "but I'm not sure that's enough."

"Lot's of people work and have kids Lil," he said as he put his pancake on a plate. "The world hasn't ended yet, so I think it's doable."

"I know," Lilly whispered. Scotty put down his plate and leaned in to give Lilly a gentle kiss.

"You aren't gonna to be your mother Lil," he told her as he caressed her cheek. "If you chose to be a mom, you're going to be an amazing one, okay?"

"Thanks Scotty," she whispered as she leaned in to give him another kiss. Scotty wanted to press her more about the subject, he really did, but tonight just wasn't the night. Tonight was a night to eat pancakes in the moonlight and finally get some rest.


End file.
